Symphony.

I see a lot of people worrying about migrating to S2 simply because they would lose the content on their existing S1 sites. The only solution would be to, one by one, transfer the data over. Has anyone actually sat down and thought of a solution to this issue?

I think I might have an idea that could work for data migration between any past, current and future versions of Symphony. This idea comes in two parts:

Data Export Campfire/Extension

1. View the extension and select which sections you want to export.
2. Pick a file-format for the data dump (xml, csv, etc...)
3. Begin the export process
4. Save the file locally
5. ???
6. PROFIT!!!

Data Import Campfire/Extension

1. View the extension via the admin panel
2. Browse for the file you just exported
3. Upload file
4. You will then be taken to a 'field mapping' screen
5. Choose your destination section
6. Map the fields from your data export to the new fields within the chosen section
7. Some other options for formatting would be good
8. Press the import button
9. ???
10. MORE PROFIT!!!

This is a pretty simplified version of the process. I see a lot of potential for importing data from other platforms using this idea as well. SQL Server, MySQL, Oracle, etc ... all have the ability to import data from other sources, why can't we apply the same solution to Symphony and get rid of this problem altogether?

Unless, of course, someone already mentioned an idea like this. I've been MIA for the past few months during my migration to Aussie land!

A multi-format exporter extension sounds like it might be a good idea on its own, and you've certainly hit the nail on the head with field-mapping.

We're actually building export/import functions directly into fields in RC1, so that on a per-field basis you can transfer data from one place (say, a select box field) to another (say, a tag list field). The installer which we'll be developing post-RC1 will incorporate something like your field-mapping screen idea, so that it can perform seamless updates both to the core system and to ensembles.

The problem we ran into which motivated this was with Bauhouse's many ensembles. Once you release an ensemble, you're heavily constrained with what updates you can make to it and still keep it updatable. We want to remove these constraints. And I think the idea you outlined here is so useful and widely applicable that it should be tightly integrated into the core+installer.

I think an out-of-the-box feature like this would be outstanding. It'd make convincing others to move from, say, WordPress to Symphony a bit easier. Currently, I think the prospect of losing all of your content would scare a good amount of people off.

Keep us updated on this! I'd also be more than happy to lend a hand if needed.